Christchurch man jailed for burglary

A Christchurch man has been jailed for two years and four months for committing a string of burglaries.

Peter James Evans, 26, was sentenced at Bournemouth Crown Court on Friday 26 June after previously pleading guilty to one count of burglary at the same court.

He also asked for 14 other burglaries committed in Dorset and Hampshire to be taken into consideration.

The court heard that on Monday 27 October 2014 Evans broke into a house in Hinton Wood Avenue and searched the bedrooms.

He stole £200 in cash, a rucksack, jewellery, watches and passports.

Crime scene investigators carried out a forensic examination of the house and found a fingerprint from the inside of a window frame. Further testing was carried out and the fingerprint was identified as being left by Evans’ right middle finger.

On Thursday 28 February 2015 Evans was arrested on suspicion of burglary. He admitted the offence telling officers that he was in the area that day looking for somewhere to burgle.

Evans said he got into the house through a small open window.

Detective Constable Andrew Brix, of Bournemouth CID, said: “Burglary crime can have a huge impact on victims and is taken very seriously in Dorset.

“I hope this sentence handed out by the courts sends out a very strong message that anyone committing burglary offences will be arrested and dealt with robustly by the courts.

“I would like to remind people to ensure their windows, no matter how small, and doors are closed and locked before they leave the house. Taking a few minutes to carry out these simple crime prevention steps can help prevent you becoming a victim of crime.”